Six more measures of Australia’s declining living standards

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  • The typical full-time worker is paying 46 per cent of their earnings as mortgage repayments, up from 32 per cent in 2022.
  • Real net disposable income per capita declined by $954 between 2022 and 2024.
  • There are 100,000 more Australians working multiple jobs in December 2024 compared to June 2022. The total number as of December 2024 tipped over one million for the first time.
  • Price level rises in food and drink (+12%), gas and other household fuels (+33%), rents (+17%), and insurance (+35%), all exceeded wages growth (+10%) between June 2022 and December 2024.
  • Total federal taxation revenue per person increased by 17% between 2021-22 and 2023-24 to $24,000.
  • When gross federal government debt hits $1.02 trillion in 2025-26, each Australians share will be approximately $36,400, up from $34,100 in 2024-25 and $33,300 in 2023-24.

Lachlan Clark

Lachlan Clark was a Research Fellow at the Institute of Public Affairs.

Morgan Begg

Morgan Begg is the Director, Research at the Institute of Public Affairs
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